Can a sound file for court be tampered with?

Question

We have a sound file that was submitted to us but it sounds diff. Can a sound file be tampered with, and can a professional tell the difference if so if we reject the file?

Answer 1

Yes you can tamper with a sound file. Yes an expert can tell you if it has been tampered with by breaking it down.

Answer 2

Yes, a digial audio file is just like any other data file, and it can be edited. If you wanted to compare one sound file against another, you can do what is called a checksum on each file. A checksum will generate a unique number for that file. If both files have the same checksum number, then the files are exactly the same.
As to tell if a digital audio file has been edited, an expert may be able to do this using digital audio software to display its pattern in a scope like manner, where you might be able to see edits or conflicts with how the sound would be naturally and if the edits were done poorly they may show up.

Answer 3

Most definetly, but you must look at the quality of the sound file also. What kind of sound file is it, is it a wave file, avi file, mp4, what kind of file, and at what quality was it recorded to begin with. anything lower that 95 hz will have terrible listeing quality, anyting above 128 will have good, but the higher the level, the better the sound. Think of it in terms like a digital picture, 1.3 meg versus 6.1 or higher, it will will have better quality all around

Answer 4

Yes it can be tampered with. Might wanna get a well known professional to be able to determine if its tampered with or not.

Answer 5

It will not be cheap...but a digital expert can tell you if it was tampered with.

Answer 6

i am having the same issue. i was told i needed a forensic audio engineer. i can't seem to find one though. if jumpingrightin
Level 4 knows where 2 get this software(as mentioned in his answer) please let me know